Appliance Rebate Program Planned in Oklahoma

Appliance Rebate Program Planned in Oklahoma

Article excerpt

Oklahomans will soon be able to receive money back for buying
certain appliances while helping the environment.

The Oklahoma Department of Commerce recently submitted a plan to
the U.S. Department of Energy outlining the state's Energy Star
Appliance Rebate program. As part of the Americans Recovery and
Reinvestment Act, Oklahoma received $3.5 million in federal funding
to promote energy-saving appliances.

By buying specific Energy Star appliances, consumers will be
eligible to receive rebates ranging from $50 to $250.

"If someone has an appliance that is five or six years old, it's
probably not as efficient as it should be and it's probably not
conserving the kind of energy it could conserve and it's probably
adverse on their utility bills," said Vaughn Clark, director of the
Commerce Department's Community Development. "So they could do two
things. They could help the environment by buying an Energy Star
appliance and lower utility bills."

The U.S. Department of Energy must still approve the state
Commerce Department's plan, which will be managed by a third-party
administrator. Under the proposed plan, the following appliances
will be eligible for rebates: clothes washers, refrigerators, room
air conditioners, water heaters, central air conditioners, gas
furnaces and ground source heat pumps. A request for proposals for
third-party administrators will soon be released and an
administrator will be chosen soon after, based on a specific rating
system that considers criteria like rebate turnaround and retailer
partnerships, Clark said.

The program will go into effect by March 1, and last as long as
money is available.

"Our plan is to have coupons available at local retailers which
they would then be able to mail in to the third-party administer in
order to get the rebate," Clark said of the current plan.

He said there are major Energy Star partners where people will be
able to purchase the appliances, but commerce officials hope to
eventually extend the reach of the program.

"It is our hope to reach out to any appliance dealer, especially
in rural parts of Oklahoma, to make these coupons available to the
small mom-and-pop shop, to the small retailer so they can also take
advantage," Clark said. …